The ubiquitous presence of broadband infrastructure, across wired and wireless access mediums, has fundamentally improved the way that enterprises can architect, deploy, and consume IT resources. Many of the earliest (and in our view, optimal) compute architectures that emphasized shared resources are now rebranded as “cloud” but the benefits are the same. Crucially, the broadband access network means that these architecture benefits, which were once local phenomena, can now be enjoyed on a largely distance-independent and mobile basis. Further, software design patterns, applications, and enterprise architecture are undergoing meaningful changes to best capitalize on new infrastructure possibilities.

This technological shift is paired with a societal change in the relevance of software to our personal and business lives. Indeed, the enterprise’s ability to drive competitive differentiation through software and unique information, regardless of industry, means that the process of creating information technology assets is strategic and demands re-invention.

…we are in the early years of a massive disruption in the traditional enterprise IT landscape driven by a shift to the Cloud, which will impact the full spectrum of market participants.

We believe that we are in the early years of a massive disruption in the traditional enterprise IT landscape driven by a shift to the Cloud, which will impact the full spectrum of market participants, from the hardware players to the network providers to professional service firms to the software vendors. At Columbia, our sector interest in the Cloud is focused on investments in services businesses that can capture leadership positions in the markets that are disrupted or created as a result of this transformation.

Representative Investments

“Columbia Capital has been an invaluable partner for Virtustream and especially for me personally. They rolled up their sleeves with us to help get Virtustream off the ground and did much more than just write checks in the early days. As the business has matured, Columbia has been a patient and long-term investor and they have played a valuable role on the Company’s Board. Most importantly, we have a huge amount of trust in each other, which makes all the difference when you’re trying to build a great, high growth business.”